


Instinct

by solohux



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Werewolf Kylo Ren
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-11
Updated: 2016-10-11
Packaged: 2018-08-21 22:50:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8263334
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/solohux/pseuds/solohux
Summary: It’s the rough sound of claws recklessly scratching against the back door of his cabin that disturbs Hux’s sleep in the middle of the night.





	

**Author's Note:**

> So I asked people [on tumblr](http://solohux.tumblr.com/post/151424543474/do-i-write-a-werewolf-kylo-oneshot-or-do-i) whether they preferred me to write a mermaid hux au or a werewolf kylo au...and mermaid hux won so I wrote that one first...and now here's werewolf kylo!
> 
> I hope you enjoy! ❤️

It’s the rough sound of claws recklessly scratching against the back door of his cabin that disturbs Hux’s sleep in the middle of the night. He allows himself a few seconds to wake up, letting his eyes adjust to the darkness of his bedroom, but the scratching grows louder, more impatient. Hux knows that with each scrape, more and more of the elegant wooden door to his cabin is ruined. He groans, rolling over to check the display of the alarm clock on his little bedside table.

 _‘3:28am,’_ Hux thinks, closing his eyes, wishing he could go back to sleep. _‘Dammit.’_

Kicking the blankets off himself, Hux sits on the edge of the bed and stretches his arms above his head, twisting his neck, hearing multiple bones crack. He hasn’t taken time away from his busy city life to stay in his mother’s quaint, forest cabin to be constantly disturbed by the _neighbours._ Loud and invasive brutes.

The polished, wooden floor is cold underneath Hux’s bare feet as he leaves his bedroom, though he’s grateful that his grey sweatpants are warm. Rubbing the back of his neck, Hux switches on various lamps in the main living area as he makes his way to the back door. The cabin isn’t particularly large; a small home that his mother had inherited from her parents when they’d passed away a decade or so ago. Having only one central room which opens as a sitting area and a kitchen with a single bedroom and en suite, Hux finds it a step down from his grand house in the city, but it’s where he enjoys escaping to when he has some time off.

The scratching ceases when Hux gets to the door, and he opens it slowly, though he already knows who’s on the other side. A wolf, with fur as dark as midnight and brown eyes as deep as the earth itself, stands strong on Hux’s porch, chips of wood at its paws from where its claws met the door. It’s tall, almost up to Hux’s shoulders, though with the softness of its eyes, Hux isn’t the least bit intimidated.

“Well. Are you coming in or not?” Hux huffs, feeling the mid-October breeze chill his arms, cursing his thin white shirt. Stepping aside, he holds the door open so the wolf can squeeze past, its fur brushing against Hux’s body as it walks into his home, tail wagging as though attempting to show gratitude.

Closing the door, Hux follows it, rolling his eyes, being wary that its tail doesn’t knock anything over. The wolf stands idly in the middle of the sitting room on the dark rug, turning its head to watch Hux walk closer.

“What do you want, Ren? It’s the middle of the night,” Hux asks, standing with his arms folded in front of the wolf. It runs its tongue over its teeth in response to his question, giving his arm a nudge with its head. “ _Oh_. Hunting not gone so well tonight, hmm?”

The wolf lets out a low howl followed by a quick grunt as though speaking, eyeing Hux as he walks into the kitchen to the fridge.

“Yes, yes,” Hux says with a wave of his hand, picking a tupperware container off of the middle shelf. “I know. Bad weather. New additions to your pack. So you’ve already told me.”

He pulls the lid off the little box and the smell of cooked chicken fills the room, making the wolf trot forward with eager steps, nudging Hux’s hand impatiently with its nose. It sniffs, jumping up to try and make Hux move a little faster.

“ _Alright,_ Ren,” Hux says, smoothing his free hand across the dark fur of the wolf’s head, trying to calm him, hoping that the beast wouldn’t attempt to _fully_ leap onto him; Hux doubts whether he’d be able to handle the wolf’s weight.

Setting the little container down on the floor, the wolf soon buries his nose in the food, eating with starved chomps, his sharp fangs cutting the meat into chunks with no problem. Hux sighs, heading back to the kitchen to make himself some tea, knowing that he’s likely not going to be back in his warm bed anytime soon. Grabbing a spare blanket from the back of one of the couches, Hux sits down with his warm mug, draping the blanket over his own shoulders as he draws his knees up to his chest, watching _Ren_ eat.

Hux sips his tea, tutting at the wolf’s messy eating, though the soft sounds of the wolf’s breath tells Hux that he’s content, and Hux smiles. He recalls the first time he’d seen Ren—or _Kylo,_ as he prefers to be called—believing that it was just an overgrown wolf, an ordinary animal, a beast with a predatory minds focussed solely on killing.

Hux had found out just how wrong he was about the black wolf when he’d gotten into a spot of trouble deep in the forest a few months ago during a hike, falling and badly twisting his ankle. The black wolf had approached him slowly, and Hux had said his goodbyes, _convinced_ that he was about to be eaten alive. But the sensation of a soft, wet nose pressing against his wounded ankle had made Hux open his eyes, seeing a _human_ quality in the wolf’s deep eyes, a sadness that resonated straight through Hux’s chest and the next thing he knew, he was leaning on the wolf’s back, hobbling back towards his cabin.

Hux’s gentle reminiscing about how he’d managed to befriend such a reckless _beast_ is disrupted as the wolf jumps onto the couch next to him, lying down, resting its head in Hux’s lap, licking the remaining parts of meat from its teeth. Hux gives the sensitive spot behind the wolf’s ear a little scratch, who gives a few soft whimpers in response.

“I thought I told you that you aren’t allowed on the furniture,” Hux says with a smirk.

The wolf growls and sits up, giving Hux’s cheek a big lick, swiping its tongue straight up his face before it hops off and pads into Hux’s bedroom before Hux has the chance to chastise him for being so childish. Wiping the drool from his face with the corner of the blanket, Hux’s gaze stays on the doorway to his bedroom, eagerly waiting for Ren to remerge in the form that Hux most appreciates.

There’s a faint sound of rustling and the air seemingly thickens in the cabin for a moment, but Hux has experienced this before; he isn’t unnerved like he was the first time. A moment later, a man strides back into the room, one of Hux’s blankets tied around his thick waist, covering his modesty. He’s tall, much like his wolf form, his hair just as dark as his fur and his eyes just as deep, just as lost.

The very first time Hux had laid his gaze upon the _human_ form of Kylo Ren, he’d lost his ability to speak. He’d left a wolf in his sitting room, returned with some food only to find a handsome, dark-haired _man_ standing in its place, every curve and contour of his thick body on show for Hux to see. Even now, Hux makes a conscious effort not to allow his gaze to linger for too long on Kylo’s strong chest.

“I thought you were joking about the furniture,” Kylo says, flopping down to sit next to Hux, their hips touching. Hux had learned early on that Kylo has _no_ sense of personal space or _private body parts_ , likely from having spent too much time as a damned _wolf._ He’s only picked up the habit of pulling a blanket around his pelvis because Hux _insists._

“Mm. I don’t joke about dirt on my mother’s fine furnishings,” Hux replies, taking another sip from his tea, the smirk still sitting proudly on his lips.

From this proximity, Hux can smell the forest on Kylo’s skin, the natural scent of earth and fresh air. It’s alluring, it makes Hux want to bury his nose in Kylo’s soft hair, pull their bodies as close as nature will allow.

“I’m not _dirty,’_ Kylo says, holding his hands out dramatically.

Cockily, Hux reaches up and pulls a small, shrivelled leaf out of Kylo’s hair, holding it in front of his face with a proud smile. Kylo swats it out of his hand quickly, and Hux chuckles, tugging his blanket further around his shoulders, being suddenly aware of his small frame next to Kylo’s wide shoulders.

“Thank you…for keeping food for me,” Kylo says, looking down at his hands in his lap, nervously picking his nails.

“You’re welcome. I had leftovers anyway,” Hux says, not wanting to make it sound like he bought _extra_ food just in case Kylo decided to stop by. Kylo _is not_ his boyfriend… _not_ his pet. “What gave you hunting trouble this time? One of the new boys again?”

Hux recalls Kylo mentioning that his pack—the _Knights of Ren_ —had acquired some new members recently and Kylo was having trouble reining their feisty behaviours in. There were, _apparently_ according to Kylo, rules about werewolves; territories, interactions with humans, when it’s the _wrong time_ to shift between forms, and so forth. Hux hadn’t really understood when Kylo had briefly explained things to him but he’d stored the information away in his mind, supposing that it may be helpful one day. After all, Kylo seems to have somehow forced Hux into adopting him.

“No. The new wolves have been fine. They’re under control now. It’s…” Kylo shakes his head and Hux notes a glazed look in his dark eyes but he swallows hard, continues talking. “There’s another pack that’s arrived nearby, come to challenge us. They’re untrained. They’re not rationing their food. My Knights managed to make a few kills but…”

“But you didn’t want to take what they’d got,” Hux says, finishing Kylo’s sentence. “But you were hungry. So you came here.”

“I thought you wouldn’t mind.”

Hux doesn’t know much about Kylo; where he came from, where he _lives_ , or even if he has any family. But there’s a lost look in Kylo’s eyes that’s calling out to Hux, telling him that wherever Kylo came from, he can’t go back, that he _lives_ wherever he can find shelter, that he’s an orphan.

Hux knows that last feeling all too well.

Placing his cold palm on Kylo’s furthest cheek, Hux turns Kylo’s head towards him, leaning in, losing himself to the werewolf’s strange allure.

“I said, _you’re welcome,_ ” Hux says. He brings his lips closer to Kylo’s until they’re touching in a gentle kiss, soft and warm, likely the two things that Kylo’s feral nature is programmed to be the opposite of. But not with Hux. Hux can almost feel the calm radiating from Kylo’s body, especially when his strong hand latches onto Hux’s leg, curling his fingers around his calf, his thumb rubbing over the soft material of his sweatpants. Hux suppresses a shiver at the pressure of Kylo’s hand but gives a slight moan into Kylo’s mouth, wanting _more._

But suddenly, there comes a pained howling sound from the distance and Kylo quickly breaks the kiss, head turned towards the noise, eyes wide.

“I have to go,” he says, jumping up from the couch, ripping his warm hands away from Hux’s body, and Hux can’t help but make a disappointed grunt as soon as the touch he’s been craving is gone.

“What’s wrong?” Hux asks, following Kylo to the back door, holding his blanket around his cold shoulders like a cape. “It didn’t sound good.”

“It’s not,” Kylo says, the hairs of his bare arms standing on end, his eyes losing their softness as the wolf in him begins to awaken. He turns to Hux for a moment, cupping his cheek, brushing his lips up in a fleeting kiss. “I’ll come back, Hux. I swear. Stay inside for me, okay?”

“Ren, wait! I—,” Hux calls, stretching out his arm and holding his hand out, but Kylo has already leapt out of the back door before Hux can touch him, shifting into his wolf form midway through his spectacular jump and sprinting off into the dark forest.

Hux lowers his hand slowly, his copper hair blowing in the nightime wind.

Hux had heard the howl from another wolf and, whatever has happened, Hux has a horrible feeling that Kylo is running straight into danger.

/////////////////////////

Never does Hux recall ever being so restless as he is the following day, every one of his jittery thoughts locked on Kylo and the morbid fate that’s potentially befallen him. He stays in his house like Kylo had suggested, cleaning and tidying to keep his mind occupied, though Hux finds himself dashing to the door or to the window every time he hears even the faintest of sounds, hoping to find Kylo—in either of his stunning forms—healthy and alive.

But as the sun sets and the air grows cold, Hux’s hope begins to waver.

He showers and changes into his pyjamas, gingerly climbing into his bed, shuffling into the middle of the large mattress and pulling the blankets right up to his chin. He scrunches his eyes closed, willing sleep to come to him quickly, trying not to imagine how it would feel to have Kylo sleeping next to him, his skin warm, inviting Hux to cling on to him during the coldest nights.

Just as his dreams become painted with images of spending his days lying in bed next to Kylo, the _gentle_ sound of scratching shocks him back into alertness, the sounds accompanied by pained whimpers. Before he’s even fully opened his eyes, Hux leaps out of bed, running to the back door, his heart in his _throat_ as he anticipates what he’s going to find. He flings the door open. The cold wind strikes him. His gaze drops to the dark silhouette lying on his porch.

Kylo, still in his wolf form, lies awkwardly on his side in front of the door, one paw stretched out to scratch at the wood, his breaths ragged and uneven. Hux presumes that he’s wounded, as blood drips onto the light brown decking, but Kylo’s dark fur and the lack of light make it difficult for Hux to see the full extent of Kylo’s wounds. He whimpers again, lifting his head, and Hux tries not to gasp at the large cut down the centre of Kylo’s face, stretching over his nose to under his eye to down his shoulder.

“Fuck,” Hux curses, dropping to his knees, feeling at a slight loss of what to do. “Ren? Can you stand? I can’t carry you, I’m sorry.”

Kylo mewls, but manages to push himself up onto all four legs, albeit shakily so, and hobbles into Hux’s cabin, blood dripping onto the pristine, wooden floor as he moves. After giving one look to the area just outside the door, Hux closes it, hoping that whoever did this to _his_ wolf isn’t still out there. Hux walks alongside Kylo, hands braces against the wolf’s shoulders, though Hux knows he won’t be able to catch him should be fall. Kylo is trembling, his fur damp and matted, likely from the light drizzle that’s been falling all night.

Once in the living room, Kylo collapses down onto the dark rug, lying on his uninjured side, panting and growling, his ears drooping.

Hux kneels down next to him, hands idly hovering over the wound on Kylo’s side, just above his back leg, slightly on the underside of his stomach. It’s deep, a chunk of flesh ripped away from him with some of his fur, left with a gaping trauma that seemingly won’t stop bleeding. Grabbing an old hoodie from the couch, Hux folds it and presses it against the wound, hoping to quell the blood flow until he can call for help. Kylo shifts, yelping in pain as he jolts the wound, and his body twists as though trying to get away from the agony.

“Stay still, Ren,” Hux says, smoothing his hand through the fur on Kylo’s neck. “Stay awake, alright?”

Kylo looks back at him with soft, brown eyes, _pleading_ for Hux to help.

“I don’t know what else to do, Ren,” Hux says.

He feels himself panicking as Kylo’s eyes become hazy, glazing over as he blinks slowly, breaths shallow. He cries, and Hux can’t help but think of the little ginger cat he had when he was little and the distressed sounds she used to make when Hux left her alone.

But Kylo isn’t alone.  

“No. Ren, please,” Hux begs, staring into Kylo’s eyes. He brushes the backs of his fingers against Kylo’s cheek, nuzzling the bloodied fur with his knuckles. “Change back. Ren, you have to change back. _Please._ I can’t help you like this…I can’t help…”

Hux feels a tear slip down his cheek as he leans forward, burying his face in Kylo’s dark fur, entwining his fingers in it, trying to _prove_ to Kylo that he’s not alone, that Hux is _here._

Oddly, the fur between Hux’s fingers disappears, as does the fur underneath his cheek, turning into cold and clammy skin. Hux sits up, watching as the final remnants of his wolf disappear and he’s kneeling over Kylo’s _human_ body, pale and bloody. The wound on his face somehow looks _worse_ now, the gash cascading across half of his young face; Hux knows it’ll scar. He peels the hoodie away from Kylo’s hip and covers his mouth with his hand at the state of the wound—or rather, _bite—_ on the lower part of Kylo’s stomach, teeth marks visible around the edges.

Hux stands, running over to one of the kitchen cupboards, trying to suppress the panic at hearing Kylo’s breaths so uneven. Grabbing the first aid box, Hux skids on his knees back to Kylo’s side, pulling antiseptic cream and bandages out of the little green container.

“I’m…sorry,” Kylo says through gritted teeth, trying to move his legs to cover his modesty.

“You’re right. You _should_ be apologising to me,” Hux says, grabbing the blanket from behind him to cover Kylo’s trembling legs, turning back to grab a cushion for his head. Most of the bleeding from the wound seems to have lessened and Hux begins cleaning it, dabbing it with a damp washcloth. “Do you know how worried I was about you? You ran head-first into danger, Ren. Even _I_ knew something was wrong so you and your _fucking_ werewolf magic must’ve known something was terribly wrong!”

Kylo doesn’t say anything, keeping his soft gaze locked on Hux’s angered face as he fixes his wound, cleaning it and dressing it. When Hux fastens the bandages around his hip and moves to his face, Hux sees the tears in Kylo’s eyes.

“It was my mother’s pack,” he says, casting his gaze downwards.

Hux freezes. “What?”

“My mother. She’s a werewolf too. Started her own pack once things began getting rough among our kind. She sent my cousin and two of her strongest wolves after me. 'The Resistance', they call themselves. I…couldn’t fight against them.”

Hux dabs the cloth gently over the gash on Kylo’s face, droplets of water dripping onto the floor, though Hux isn't sure whether they're Kylo's tears.

“Is that who harmed you?” Hux asks, swearing an idle revenge on the wolves who did this. 

“No. I mean, Rey—my cousin—she did this,” he gestures awkwardly to his wounded face. "She clawed me. I wasn't fast enough." 

“What about the other one?" Hux nods towards Kylo's hip. "It’s a bite, isn’t it?”

“I—,” Kylo hesitates, biting his lip and closing his eyes. “It's complicated. My father. He’s…not like me. Or my mother. He’s human. _Was_ human. But his best friend was once a man who became permanently changed into a wolf and he…attacked me. Then the others came and I couldn't defend myself. My instincts told me to run...to you.”

Hux admits to himself that he’s unnerved by Kylo’s shaky tone of voice. It doesn’t _sound_ like him; Kylo, leader of the Knights of Ren, is reckless and _fearless_ yet now, he sounds like a frightened boy wandering in the dark, looking for someone to help him.

Kylo’s deep eyes have never looked so lost.

“Ssh,” Hux soothes, running his hand through Kylo’s damp hair, brushing it back out of his face. “You're safe here, Ren. You don’t have to talk about any of it now. You should rest. We’ll get you into bed, get you healed. I'll call a doctor--."

“No. No doctors. I should go,” Kylo says, moving to push himself up. “My pack. I should go to them. You’ve already done enough for me—.”

“ _Ren._ Lie back down,” Hux orders, pushing Kylo back onto the cushion. “Your pack will be fine for one night. You’ve got no strength. What good will you be to your pack if you can't even walk, hmm?”

Kylo exhales slowly through his nose, nodding gently, nuzzling back down into the cushion, shifting underneath the soft blanket.

“Stay,” Hux whispers, brushing Kylo’s dark hair back behind his ear, planting a kiss on his forehead.

And for the first time in his life, Kylo decides to follow someone else’s orders.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! My tumblr is [@solohux](http://solohux.tumblr.com/) ❤️ 
> 
> Come and talk to me about _**all**_ the kylux fantasy au's ❤️


End file.
